22.01.2017 - Jena

Observer: Marco Rank Date: 22.01.2017 Time: 07:45 - 10:45 CET Forum topic: forum.meteoros.de

At the time of observation, there was a high-pressure weather condition with surface inversion and fog from AGL~50m up to about 250m above sea level. From around 8:30, the fog increasingly dissipated. It persisted longer in the southern Saale Valley towards Kahla - approximately from the town of Rothenstein (almost complete dissipation except for remaining haze by 11 a.m.). The ice fog extended over the districts of Jena-Göschwitz, Leutra, and Maua. The temperature that morning was around -10 to maximum -6°C at sunrise (08:45 - 10:45 CET). The old snow height was about 5cm and frost was widespread.

Location: Mönchsberg Time: 08:48 - 09:13 CET Sun height: 5 - 8° On the morning of January 22, 2017, I went for a short ride to watch the sunrise on Mönchsberg in Jena. The excursion escalated into a truly impressive halo show. First, I noticed the striking lower light pillar. This was accompanied by the left lower parhelion.

Observed halo types: Lower light pillar (EE09) / Left subsun (EE45)

Somehow I then had the suspicion that there might be halo-active ice fog down there, as I had never seen anything like it during other inversions. So, it was quickly back to the car and off to the fog boundary.

Here, the halos could be observed for the first time in the middle of ice fog. I then drove into and out of the fog, left and right ... in short: crisscrossed. The area where the halos occurred can be narrowed down to the following locations: Jena-Göschwitz, Jena-Maua, and Jena-Leutra. Unfortunately, there is now a newly expanded federal road here, so it is anything but easy to find a good spot for observation. I saw the most magnificent halos while driving (the GoPro for the car was at home...). Nonetheless, a few photos turned out well.

Observed Halo Types: 22° Ring / both Sundogs / Upper Tangent Arc / Lower Tangent Arc / Circumzenithal Arc / Parhelic Circle / 120° Parhelia / Subsun / Lower Sundogs

Location: Maua on the B88 Time: 10:10 - 10:25 CET Sun height: 13.5 - 15° Especially the parhelia and subsun appeared dazzlingly bright on the B88. These phenomena were accompanied by an especially pronounced light cross within the 22° ring.

Observed halo types: 22°-Ring, Sundogs, Upper Tangent Arc, Upper Pillar, Lower Pillar, Circumzenithal Arc, Parhelic Circle, Supralateral Arc, 120°-Sundogs, Subsun, Lower Sundog, Tape's Arc

Location: Maua Time: 10:30 - 10:40 CET Sun altitude: 15 - 16° Now the halo phenomenon revealed itself in all its glory. The supralateral arc, the Parry arc, the sun arc, and even the subsun arc appeared. In the antisolar area, a brightening was noticeable. In the photo, the beginnings of Tricker's antisolar arc are also visible.

The following panorama shows the different types of halos with labels. You can compare the original with the USM-edited version.

With the help of image editing techniques, other halo types were found in the recordings. It is quite possible that the rare Moilanen arc, which is located between the sun and the upper tangent arc, appeared for a short time. Additionally, a "halo arm" above the left sundog can be seen. This is likely the left upper Lowitz arc.